Inspire U.S. Board

Eileen Haag

Eileen Haag

Eileen Haag is the President of Inspire U.S. She is married to Ira Lechner, the organization’s founder and Chairman of the Board. She comes to this position with a communications and management background in both private enterprise and the not-for-profit worlds. Along the way, she has been a newspaper reporter, editor, owner and publisher; an award-winning television talk show host; a consultant to K-12 public school superintendents, technology companies, and municipal government agencies.

Whether helping a community recover from a disastrous fire, bringing donors together to learn about effective philanthropy, or creating the best possible places to live, she has taken leadership roles in numerous community organizations.

Her personal passion for civic engagement had its roots as a newspaper reporter and then editor at the Daily Collegian at Penn State University. Her first job was with Time, Inc. in New York City during the height of protest about the Vietnam War. When she moved to California to raise her children, she founded a newspaper in San Diego and put on its masthead that “an informed community can create its own destiny.” She continues to believe this and is fully engaged with Inspire U.S. which carries this philosophy to young adults who are eligible to participate in our democracy through voting and civic action.